Western Albemarle got a pair of goals from Erica Repich and their defense made it stand up as they went on the road and spoiled Charlottesville’s senior night with a 2-0 win.
Much of the first half was played with Western on the attack. It took them a while to get going, with neither team registering a shot for about fifteen minutes. Western nearly struck then, but Charlottesville goalie Casey Casarez made a nifty twisting save on Sophie Lanahan in front of the net.
“At the beginning of the year we had trouble getting our forwards in toward the goal,” Western coach Mia Fields said. “Now we’re making our runs better–we’ve always been scrappy, now they’re just getting rewarded for their hard work.”
The Warriors, who beat Charlottesville in a shootout in the teams’ first meeting, finally went ahead in the 21st minute when a shot from Repich dodged a group of sticks in the middle of the crease and bounced in for a 1-0 lead.
“This time we played with more confidence. We were excited to get back on the field with them,” Repich said. “This time we just made a few more plays.”
Repich struck again in the 27th minute, this time from much closer in, and Western took a 2-0 lead into halftime.
After the break, the Western defense clamped down for good, holding the Black Knights without a shot in the final 30 minutes. Charlottesville controlled possession in the final minutes, but couldn’t generate a chance.
“We knew Charlottesville was going to hustle the whole time, it was their senior night, we knew they were going to come out strong,” Fields said. “The girls are really starting to buy in to the concept of stretching the field and trusting each other. It did help our confidence last week, winning in the shootout.”
For the game, Western outshot Charlottesville 8-1. Casarez registered four saves for the Knights.
